The local government has and will react to the massacre in the meadows of Pahalgam. The Union government will no doubt respond to it. The security establishment will retaliate in appropriate measure. As they all must, each in their own way. But it is not only about the government. What are the people of Kashmir to do? The massacre of tourists is as much against the government as it is against the people.

Every Kashmiri is shocked into silence and speechless in shame. He is grieving. She is mourning. They are burdened with self-reproach. He doesn’t have a face to show. She doesn’t have the heart to condone. They are numbed by the assault. The air hangs heavy with lament. Kashmir and Kashmiris today find it difficult to come to terms with this brutality.

He desires peace. She deserves peace. They demand peace.

There has been an all-round condemnation as there always has been. Already, political parties, trade bodies, business associations and professional groups have protested against the inhuman carnage. The Valley observed a shutdown, a complete Kashmir bandh. All this is, of course, a must, but is it good enough? More needs to be done by the civil society of Kashmir. It is imperative to move beyond condemnation and disapproval.

True, the unprecedented boom in tourist activity has been cut short cruelly; the economic shock will pan out and linger on for months, if not years to come. The revival of trade and commerce, which accounts for 40 per cent of........

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